Dear Parents,

I have prepared this letter to introduce myself and to explain some of the policies in my classroom so that your child can have the best educational experience possible. 

This is my eighth year of teaching at Lu Sutton School and my 22nd year of teaching overall, all in the first and second grades.  I have a Masters degree in Curriculum and Instruction from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo.  The interesting thing is that when I was a student teacher, I taught first and fourth grades.  Fourth grade was my dream job but all of the openings at the time were for first grade teaching assignments.  I took a position and fell in love with first grade.  Now I feel like I have come full circle and I am really excited about the opportunity to work with fourth graders, my first love. 

HOMEWORK

There will be daily homework assignments in math and reading (except for Fridays).  Occasionally, there will be additional assignments and all homework assignments should be written in the students’ daily planners.  Students will be rewarded with free homework passes and possible other rewards for regularly completing their homework assignments.  Homework that is not completed by the due date should be completed by the following day.  If a student repeatedly does not complete homework, parents will be notified and the student may have to serve lunch recess detention to complete the missing assignments. It is extremely important that homework books be kept in a safe place so that they are not lost and kept out of the way of younger siblings and pets.  We do not have extra books to replace any lost or damaged books.  

DISCIPLINE

I believe that no child has the right to interfere with the education of another child.  Students that cause disciplinary problems in the classroom do just that.  I take this area very seriously and students are told that they are responsible for their own behavior and if they choose to behave poorly they will face certain consequences (see Rules and Discipline sections).  It is very important that the child know that the parent and the teachers are a united front and that we will work together to resolve a problem.

CLASSROOM RULES

Students will:

1. Treat everyone with respect.

2. Keep hands and feet to themselves.

3. Raise their hands if they have a comment or a question.

4. Listen respectfully to a person talking to the class.

5. Clean up their own messes.

DISCIPLINE PLAN

If you break a rule:

1^st time Name on board = warning

2^nd time Name + 1 check = Time-out

3^rd time Name + 2 checks = Time-out and lose privileges 

(possible note/call home)

4^th time Parent Conference

5^th time Will be sent to the Principal

Severe Disruption Sent directly to the Principal

REWARDS

There are individual and class rewards for good behavior, including:

Stickers, scented stamps, prizes, cheetah pats, video time, class parties: pizza, ice cream, popcorn, etc.; lunch with the teacher, homework passes, educational game day, P.E. day, science day, art day, etc.

CONCLUSION

In closing, I want to encourage you to feel free to contact me with any concerns, questions, or comments.  You can contact me with a note, phone call, stopping by at the end of the day, or emailing me at [email protected].  I do have to admit that checking my district email address on a daily basis is a challenge for me.  I do always get to it by Friday or the weekend but if you want a quicker reply, please contact me by another method.  Sometimes it might be difficult to get back to you during the school day but I will contact you at the earliest time possible.  Your child is important to me and I take this responsibility very seriously.  

Sincerely,

Karen Matson